Chad C. Finchum (born September 22, 1994) is an American professional

stock car racing Stock car racing is a form of automobile racing run on oval tracks and road courses measuring approximately . It originally used production-model cars, hence the name "stock car", but is now run using cars specifically built for racing. It ori ...

driver. He last competed part-time in the

NASCAR Xfinity Series The NASCAR Xfinity Series (NXS) is a stock car racing series organized by NASCAR. It is promoted as NASCAR's second-tier circuit to the organization's top level Cup Series. NXS events are frequently held as a support race on the day prior to a ...

, driving the No. 13 Toyota Supra for MBM Motorsports. Finchum has also driven several races in the NASCAR K&N Pro Series East, capturing a victory at Bristol Motor Speedway in that series, and in the

NASCAR Cup Series The NASCAR Cup Series is the top racing series of the National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing (NASCAR). The series began in 1949 as the Strictly Stock Division, and from 1950 to 1970 it was known as the Grand National Division. In 1971, ...

Racing career

Early years

Finchum began racing at age seven, starting his career racing

go-karts A go-kart, also written as go-cart (often referred to as simply a kart), is a type of sports car, close wheeled car, open-wheel car or quadracycle. Go-karts come in all shapes and forms, from non-motorised models to high-performance racing ...

at Dumplin Valley Raceway in Tennessee. By age 13 he had logged 200 go-kart wins on dirt and asphalt. He then moved to full-bodied cars, often racing late models at Kingsport Speedway in Tennessee, and also competed in

Bandolero A bandolero was a Spanish robber. Bandolero may also refer to: Film *''The Bandolero'', lost 1924 film *'' Bandolero!'', a 1968 movie starring James Stewart * ''Los Bandoleros'' (film), 2009 short film Music *Bandolero (band) Bandolero was ...

and Legends cars in Charlotte Motor Speedway's Summer Shootout. He would win the Tennessee NASCAR Whelen All-American Series championship in 2010. Finchum graduated from

Halls High School (Knox County, Tennessee) Halls High School is a high school in the Halls Crossroads suburb of Knoxville, Tennessee, operated by Knox County Schools. Founded in 1916, the school was one of the first in the area. It is named for Pulaski Hall, a prominent citizen and owner ...

K&N Pro Series East

Finchum drove his first four K&N Pro Series East races in 2011 with Lori Williams, who had given Daniel Suárez and Jesus Hernandez rides previously. Finchum scored two top-ten finishes that first year, finishing seventh at Bowman Gray Stadium and Gresham Motorsports Park. He joined Spraker Racing in 2012, finishing seventh again at Bristol Motor Speedway but not finding success in his other three starts. One start with Spraker in 2013 yielded a DNF at Bristol. Finchum then started 2015 driving for his own team but then associated with Martin-McClure Racing later in the year. In only his third start with the team, and his first in 2016, Finchum won the K&N race at Bristol. Starting from the fourth position, Finchum passed polesitter and leader Harrison Burton thirteen laps into the race and never looked back. In a late restart Finchum held off future NASCAR national series drivers

Kyle Benjamin Kyle S. Benjamin (born November 3, 1997) is an American professional stock car racing driver. He most recently competed part-time in the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour, driving the No. 15 for LFR Chassis, and part-time in the NASCAR Gander Outdoors ...

, Justin Haley, Kaz Grala and Todd Gilliland. Focusing on the Xfinity Series in 2017, Finchum ran one K&N race, recording a fifth at Bristol.

Xfinity Series

Finchum, in conjunction with his K&N Pro Series East team Team McClure Inc., signed on for two races with MBM Motorsports including a debut race at Dover International Speedway. Despite falling out with engine problems at Dover, Finchum was approved for 1.5-mile tracks, yielding another start at

Kentucky Speedway Kentucky Speedway is a tri-oval speedway in Sparta, Kentucky, which has hosted ARCA, NASCAR and Indy Racing League racing annually since it opened in 2000. The track is currently owned and operated by Speedway Motorsports, Inc. Before 2008 J ...

. Finchum made five more starts in 2017 ranging from 1-mile Dover to 2.5-mile

Indianapolis Motor Speedway The Indianapolis Motor Speedway is an automobile racing circuit located in Speedway, Indiana, an enclave suburb of Indianapolis, Indiana. It is the home of the Indianapolis 500 and the Verizon 200, and and formerly the home of the United State ...

, cracking the top thirty three times. In late November 2017, Finchum was announced as the full-time driver of MBM's No. 40 entry for the

2018 NASCAR Xfinity Series The 2018 NASCAR Xfinity Series was the 37th season of the NASCAR Xfinity Series, a stock car racing series sanctioned by NASCAR in the United States. William Byron won the 2017 championship with JR Motorsports, but moved up to the Monster Ene ...

season. He led second practice at Daytona International Speedway in July. He finished the year 30th in final point standings. In 2019, Finchum surprisingly qualified 2nd for both the Rinnai 250 and the Boyd Gaming 300 after rain cancelled qualifying. That season he ran nearly full time, only missing Daytona being run by Johnny Jackson.

Cup Series

On March 27, 2018, Finchum announced in a Bristol Motor Speedway promotional video that he would make his

Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series The NASCAR Cup Series is the top racing series of the National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing (NASCAR). The series began in 1949 as the Strictly Stock Division, and from 1950 to 1970 it was known as the Grand National Division. In 1971, ...

debut at that track in April 2018. The run came in the No. 66 car for MBM Motorsports, whom he also drives for in the

. Bristol was a track that Finchum was especially excited to make his debut at, as he considers it a "home track". After starting 38th, he finished 33rd when he retired from the race on lap 335. Finchum failed to qualify for the

2020 Daytona 500 The 2020 Daytona 500, the 62nd running of the Daytona 500, event, was a NASCAR Cup Series race held on February 16–17, 2020. It was contested over 209 laps—extended from 200 laps due to an green-white-checker finish, overtime finish, on the a ...

after finishing 20th in Duel 1 of the 2020 Bluegreen Vacations Duels. In September, he ran the South Point 400 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, finishing last when overheating ended his day after 19 laps. He also competed at Kansas and Texas, where he respectively finished 39th and 35th. He was due to return to the

Daytona 500 The Daytona 500 is a NASCAR Cup Series motor race held annually at Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Florida. It is the first of two Cup races held every year at Daytona, the second being the Coke Zero Sugar 400, and one of three ...

the following year in the No. 13 for MBM (previously the No. 49), but was replaced by Garrett Smithley. He's due to running the

Ally 400 The Ally 400 is a NASCAR Cup Series race at Nashville Superspeedway in Gladeville, Tennessee. The first race took place in 2021, the first Cup event in the Nashville area since 1984. The NASCAR Xfinity Series and NASCAR Camping World Truck Se ...

with the 66, his debut number in 2018.

Motorsports career results

NASCAR

(

key Key or The Key may refer to: Common meanings * Key (cryptography), a piece of information that controls the operation of a cryptography algorithm * Key (lock), device used to control access to places or facilities restricted by a lock * Key (map ...

) (Bold – Pole position awarded by qualifying time. ''Italics'' – Pole position earned by points standings or practice time. * – Most laps led.)

Cup Series

=Daytona 500

Xfinity Series

K&N Pro Series East

Season still in progress
Ineligible for series points

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Finchum, Chad Living people 1994 births Sportspeople from Knoxville, Tennessee Racing drivers from Tennessee NASCAR drivers Halls High School (Knox County, Tennessee) alumni